Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1887-05-28
PROGRESS IN JAPAN.
HOW THE PEOPLE BEGAN FARMING
ON THE AMERICAN PLAN.
Manufacturing Agricultural Implements
Under Dihaculties-Trial Of the First
Plow-The Natives Greatly Astonished.
Watching Moving Machine at Work.

In few days received the somewhat
startling notice that the government had de-
termined to adopt my advice, and that in a
few days force Of native mechanics would
be ready to work under my directions manu-
featuring the implements. As was no me-
chanic, and as had always thought I had no
mechanical ingenuity, I was in very serious
dilemma. To say that could not do it was
to lose all prestige. On the other hand, an
attempt to do it would almost surely end in
failure. consulted with my American
| friends and they all encouraged me to go
ahead and do the best could. II there had
been models to work from the initiative ca
pacity of the japanese would have been equal
! to the emergency, but We had no models for
the more complex and difficult implements.
However, I concluded that an American
could do anything that anybody else had ever
done and accepted the responsibility, though
with many misgivingS A small wooden
building was put up and divided, one-half for
a blacksmith shop and tho other half for
wood workers. started in on plows We
had to take the Japanese ingots of steel, the
same as they had made their old swords from,
and presumably the same as had been used to
make the old Damascus blades. 1t is the best
steel now made in the world With these
little ingots these patient workers hammered
away day after day as I had directed until
the first plowshare was finished. In the
mean time the wood workers had made the
beam and handles from tho old oak in the
Yeddo castle gate When it had been put
together the plow had q very respectable ap-
pearance.
TRIAL OF THE FIRST PLow.
This experiment had excited a great deal Of
attention from the japanese officials, and I
had received notice that in few days two or
three cabinet officials would be present to see
the plow work. At the appointed time they
came, with good deal Of ceremony. and the
plow was successfully tried. The astonish-
ment and delight of the officials were very
great. They invited me to dinner and sent
presents to the mechanics who had made the
first foreign plow ever constructed in Japan.
Our little shop gradually grew until it became
quite factory. We made everything used
on farm except moving and threshing ma
chimes We even made thimbls skein wagons,
the thimble being cast at the foundry Of the
navy department.. I had to guess at the
width of the track, having forgotten the
width of the track Of our wagons. When
finished they looked well and worked well, but
now know that they were four inches wider
than even the old Illinois wide track wagons.
The most difficult task was to make spring
steel fork tines and spring steel teeth for hay
rakes, but we did both.
HEMPEN HARNESS..
In the hurry of this work some oversights
were bound to be made One was in making
harness. When all ready for that, we found
that there was very little harness leather in
lone IN INN
What was to be done was q very serious
question. My mental resources were nearly
exhausted when remembered having seen
the negroes down south during the war plow-
ing with rope harness. Acting upon theo,
had made 200 sets Of hemp harness. every
piece in the same shape as in leather harness,
and they answered q very useful purpose.
There was not piece of leather about them,
as we used canvas for the collars. When
arrived on the ground selected for the farm
found that nad not done with the plow
eaeet;;.s;- Syorne portions Of tho pasture wesr
covered with chestnut DuSneS, and the ground
was full of large roots, SO much 50 that no
ordinary plow could cut them. In order to
prepare this ground for plowing, men were
put to grubbing out these roots. At even
the extremely low price at which labor is
bushes would be an expensive operation.
therefore had plow made that could not be
broken. It was made of wrought steel, cut a
twenty-six inch furrow, and was strong
enough to go through any obstacle. To this
plow we attached nine horses, three abreast,
and with it we went through the chestnut
bushes as though they had been rushes.
When the horses were thoroughly broken and
kbo
could plow from three to three and one-half
acres per day with this big plow.
THE NATIVES AsTONIsHED.
Near to our operations were large old farm
ing districts with numerous population.
By the time our plows and harrows were sue
cessfuly running the fame of the foreign
farm had spread to these people, and they
came focking in, whole villages making
journeys to see the wonderful foreign imple-
ments work. With their mode Of digging up
the soil with mattock an eighth Of an acre
is good days work for a man. When the
farmers, who had never seen any other than
mattock tlage, saw this great plow turning
its twenty-six inch furrow at the rate of
three acres per day. they held up their hands
and cried, "Wonderfull Wonderful" Through
the whole of the first year our labor saving
machinery drew crowds Of native farmers,
some from distance of more than 100 miles,
and these journeys were mostly made on foot.
A greater wonder than the plow, even, were
the moving machines: Some of the pasture
divisions vera clear of brush, smooth as a
house floor with fine grass for hay. A pair
of japanese ponies, With a fifty-four inch
sickle bar mower, could easily cut from
twelve to fifteen acres per day, while with q
japanese grass knife quarter of an acre was
good days work. The sight of these mowers
cutting swath fifty -four inches wide, as fast
as horses could walk, took the breath away
from these simple people.
DANGEROUS CURIOSITY.
How the machine did it was the mystery,
as the sickle and bar when work was being
| done was hidden in the grass. Their curiosity
would lead them directly in front Of the ma
chine, in spite of the warnings of the driver,
and it was found necessary to have
mounted attendant with each machine to save
the limbs of the curious A corn shelter was
another marvel, taking in the ears of corn
and discharging the shelled corn at one open
ing and the cobs at another. But what struck
them dumb was self raking harvester. The
construction of that could be explained to
their minds only on the grounds that the in
ventor was a wizard and dealt in the SUPER
naturaL-H. Latham in San Francisco
Chronicle.
Piutes showed Under.
A Nevada newspaper says that q citizen
recently saw two Piute bucks dig a hole in a
snow bank, get into it, and wrap themselves
in a single blanket, preparatory to nights
rest. In the morning he saw no signs of the
indians: but a mound Of snow marked the
spot where they went to bed. He was sure
that they had frozen during the night and
prepared to dig out the bodies, but the first
thrust Of th, shovel brought the bucks to
| their feet, with grunts Of disgust. Instead of
being frozen, they were moist with perspirs-
tion.-New York Sun.
Teapot and Punch Bowl.
Afternoon teas are filling up the remaining
days of the season at Washington and the
teapot and punch bowl still draw" as
theatrical people put it. A lackadaisical
youth who was making eyes and saying
soulful things in a languid way to pretty
assistant at a reception was handed glass of
punch to change the conversation. Tasting
the compound, he rolled his eyes up, and
said, "This punch is symphony" He was
|